About GRCV

Our Mission

Girls Rock Camp Vancouver is a non-profit society that builds self esteem in female youth through music creation and performance. By providing workshops and technical training, we create leadership opportunities, cultivate a supportive community of peers and mentors, and encourage social change and the development of life skills.

What a camp day looks like

Campers in each session form a band, write a song together, build music skills and perform at a showcase concert at the end of the week for family, friends and screaming fans. It’s a great way to meet new friends, try out an instrument, and play in a band. GRCV is a safe space for creativity and fun and for sharing resources and knowledge. No musical experience is required! Campers also attend workshops in subjects such as Songwriting, Self-Defense, Image & Identity, Zine-Making, Screen- Printing, Gear Set-up/Maintenance and more!

Campers spend every morning learning an instrument they’ve chosen before camp, and every afternoon practicing with the band they form on the first day. There is a small lunch time show for the campers at lunch every day. GRCV provides all instruments, food, and on-site counselors for conflict resolution. On Saturday, campers perform their original songs at a final showcase in front of a large audience.

About Us

Girls Rock Camp Vancouver is a project for female youth aged 8-17. We believe that every person deserves to love and believe in themselves regardless of economic status, sexual orientation, gender, race, religion or size and that every person deserves the opportunity to develop the necessary skills to move through their lives with success and confidence. By creating an environment that respects and fosters diverse learning styles and holds space for diverse forms of information processes and expression we hope to encourage female youth to respect each other’s differences. Through collective collaboration in song writing, learning and engaging with music, participants increase their self-esteem, broaden their identity, increase communication and learn new skills. While collaborating with their band and during our various workshops, campers share stories of their experiences and increase awareness and compassion for each other. Through art based learning, young women build trust, connections to the community, empowerment, and valuable support that’s lends them the necessary tools to help them through challenges.

Who We are

We are a community of organizers, instructors, and camp volunteers who came together in 2009 to plan Vancouver’s first ever Girls Rock Camp – an action inspired by Portland’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp for Girls which began in 2001, and an action we felt was crucial to promoting change in both the music industry and the lives of young women. GRCV is now part of a worldwide alliance with new Girls Rock Camps every year! Our collective is entirely volunteer run and operates and makes decisions using a consensus model. We are a registered non-profit in British Columbia.